


How Much Freedom Do We Have?

by eraluna



Category: The Maze Runner (Movies), The Maze Runner Series - All Media Types, The Maze Runner Series - James Dashner
Genre: Alternate Universe - Yakusoku no Neverland | The Promised Neverland Fusion, Childhood Friends, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-18
Updated: 2021-02-09
Packaged: 2021-03-14 13:42:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 9,852
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28796358
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/eraluna/pseuds/eraluna
Summary: Eleven year olds Newt, Thomas and Minho live an idyllic life at the Glade House Orphanage. One night, when fellow orphan Winston is sent away, Newt and Minho discover something horrible and decide they have no choice but to escape.
Relationships: Minho & Newt (Maze Runner), Minho & Thomas (Maze Runner), Newt & Thomas (Maze Runner), Newt/Thomas (Maze Runner)
Comments: 3
Kudos: 6





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Inspired by astralpenguin's works, here is a fairly straightforward Promised Neverland - Maze Runner Fusion. You don't have to know Promised Neverland, but I recommend the show.  
> Enjoy!

Minho and Newt peered curiously through the metal bars of the heavy gate, shaking with the nervous adrenaline that comes from breaking the rules. The gate separated them from a red brick corridor that disappeared into shadow, presumably leading to the outside world.

This was all Minho’s idea and when he was determined to do something, there was no stopping him. Especially when, despite Newt’s trepidation, he had been rather curious himself. On their way down the great lawn, they spotted Thomas under his usual tree. Newt bounded over, and with enough badgering, they were able to convince him to come along. 

Minho sighed. “I wonder why we’re never allowed to go outside.” He said absently. Their life in the orphanage was amazing, but one did have to wonder; why couldn’t they go out once in a while? According to the books, the outside world was a wonderful, exciting place, promising experiences they could never have locked up in the orphanage. 

Newt shrugged. “Mom always tells us doesn’t she? Never go near the gate or fence in the back of the forest because it’s dangerous. Maybe that extends to the outside world in general?”

“That’s obviously a lie,” Thomas muttered. He was being a grumpy contrarian as usual.

Newt turned to Thomas, struck with a thought, “Hey Tommy, what do you want to do when we finally go outside?” Thomas tilted his head in consideration. “I don’t know, what about you?” Newt frowned, then remembered the book of animals he was reading. “I want to ride a giraffe!” He said happily. Thomas rolled his eyes. “Of all the things, that’s what you come up with?” Newt laughed, shoving him playfully. 

Minho ignored the two lovebirds, stepping closer to the gate. “I wonder what this gate is protecting us from,” he said quietly. 

* * *

The sun rose on another day at Glade House. Newt woke up, a smile already on his face, and cheerfully called for everyone to wake up if they didn't want to miss breakfast. Today was a big day. They had an exam in the morning, break time in the afternoon, and in the evening, little Winston would be taken away to the outside world. 

Newt busied himself with his daily morning routine: helping the younger kids with their buttons and shoes, smiling fondly at Teresa’s attempts to get Harriet to stop chasing Sonya, and greeting Gally, Winston, and Little Bunny, Winston's toy rabbit, as he gave Chuck a piggyback ride to the dining hall. Sonya and Harriet bumped into him on the way there, and he chased them playfully, giggling as Chuck climbed onto his shoulders. Finally making it to the hall, he ran into Thomas and Minho, Thomas mocking his overly enthusiastic greeting as usual and asking him if he was actually five years old instead of eleven. Sometimes Thomas could be really mean!

Luckily Mama was there to clear things up and they were all herded to sit peacefully together at the long rows of tables and give thanks for their meal, which was excellent as usual. Newt smiled happily. He was sad to see Winston go, but he was very grateful for the life he had at the Glade. He had the best family anyone could ask for, beautiful grounds to explore, and challenging but fun classes and monthly exams.

Speaking of which, they had an important exam today. He needed to keep his focus if he wanted to maintain his status as a perfect scorer along with Minho and Thomas. At eight years old, Thomas had been the first to reach a perfect score. However, Minho and Newt, not ones to resist a challenge, worked all the harder, studying furiously together to catch up to him. Minho was next, with Newt right behind him. 

This test was particularly difficult, Newt thought, sharing a commiserating smile with Teresa, who had flopped onto her desk in exhaustion. But he felt confident in his performance. After a delicious lunch, they gathered in the classroom to hear their results, and sure enough, Mama congratulated Newt, Minho and Thomas on once again getting perfect scores. Gally and Teresa, the next youngest, weren’t far behind. “Good job you guys.” Teresa said ruefully, shaking her head. “One day I’ll be up there with you three.”

Gally however, didn’t take it as well, steaming in the head as usual. “You better be It for hide and seek, slinthead,” he sneered, focusing his ire on Minho, well acknowledged to be peerless among them as a seeker. Minho shrugged, hiding a smile. He enjoyed being It anyway, and would have offered even without Gally’s challenge. 

With Thomas as timekeeper, the rest of them scattered into the woods. In the past, hide and seek games had often stretched past breaktime. Newt remembered one time several years ago when Minho had evaded the seeker so well that it was dinner time before Mama was finally forced to go and find him. At Mama’s mild suggestion that they find some way to make their games shorter, the orphans had established a time limit of half an hour. Usually, this limit left a small handful of victors that the seeker simply couldn’t reach in time. However, when Minho was It, he would, almost without exception, catch everyone with time to spare.

Not for lack of trying. Newt grinned at Minho as they raced through the forest, zigzagging between trees and jumping across bubbling streams. Minho was a great runner, building up an impressive athleticism despite his many illnesses as a younger child. However, Newt was more naturally athletic, proving this fact by jumping to the other side of a shallow ravine, at the bottom of which ran a gushing creek. 

He looked behind him and saw Minho running along the far bank. He was probably heading towards the bridge, which was far away enough that it would buy him some time to find a tree and wait out the remaining minutes. 

But Minho wasn’t the best seeker for nothing. With three minutes left, Newt grinned from his perch on the branches as he saw Minho approach the tree where he was hiding. His muffled giggle turned into a cry of alarm when Minho tripped on a stray root and didn’t immediately get back up.

Worried, he jumped down from the tree to see if he was alright. Minho curled in on himself, clutching his leg and Newt ran over. “Are you okay?!” He asked in a panic. When he drew near, Minho suddenly popped up and tapped his shoulder. “Sorry man, I was just pretending.” He laughed.

“No fair, shuckface, I was worried” Newt cried.

“Well this is what you get for your worry.” Minho said, smiling to take the edge off. Maybe you shouldn’t be so nice all the time.” 

“I win!” Minho announced happily to cheers from the little kids as they returned to the lawn. They gravitated towards Thomas, plopping down beside him at his usual tree. “Why do you always win!” Newt whined. “I’m faster than you.” 

“Yeah, but he’s more strategic, which is what tag is all about,” Thomas said, smirking. “If you only used your head a little more, you might have a chance. 

“It’s just a simple game of tag.”

“Nothing simple about it. It’s chess, but with your whole body, right Minho?”

“That’s right!” Minho beamed. He turned to Thomas “But you’re better than me at chess. You should try seeking, I’m sure you’d be great at it, you might even beat me.” 

Thomas shrugged. “Nah, you can keep your position as best seeker. You probably overestimate me anyway.” 

Newt frowned at Thomas. “Antisocial spoilsport. You can’t be a timekeeper every time, you know.”

“Watch me.”

Minho leaned back against the tree. “As good as we are, we still can’t beat Mama at chess.” He sighed.

“Give it time,” Newt said. “Maybe when we’re older, we can come back and play her.” 

Thomas raised an eyebrow, but said nothing.

Their conversation was interrupted by an angry Gally, who challenged Minho to hide and seek with the format flipped, having the entire group search for Minho first. Minho agreed, but ten minutes in, Newt found him out in the open by the small fence, staring into the forest beyond. He tagged him, but his heart wasn’t in it. Minho was obviously deep in thought. “Never go near the fence, no matter what.” Newt said thoughtfully. 

“Because it’s too dangerous,’ Minho continued the frequent warning they had been given.

“That’s obviously a lie.” 

They jumped. Thomas had snuck up beside them without them noticing. Newt remembered Thomas saying something similar several years ago. “Why do you say that?” He asked Thomas curiously. 

Thomas shrugged. “Well, I don’t see anything threatening, do you? Besides, if it really were dangerous, wouldn't the fence be taller?”

Newt sighed, “Well maybe, but if Mama said it’s dangerous, then-”  
Thomas cut him off, “You really love Mama, don’t you.” There was something mocking in his tone. Newt frowned. “What are you talking about? Everyone does.” 

“C’mon guys, are you even playing?” They turned to see Gally running up with Winston, who was clutching Little Bunny as usual. Teresa, Chuck and Ben appeared on the other side, likely drawn in by the voices. “You already found Minho.” Teresa concluded, frowning in disappointment. 

“We should get back, it’s getting dark.” Ben said, looking in concern at the sky, which was fast changing colors from fiery orange reds to cool purplish blues. “We don’t want Mama to get worried.” 

Gally scoffed, slinging an arm over Ben’s shoulders. “You worry too much yourself.” 

They stood there by the gate in silence. “I guess we’ll all be leaving the orphanage, at one time or another,” Gally finally said, staring at the small fence.

“Of course.” Ben answered, pushing off Gally’s arm. “It’s an orphanage, that’s how it works. Sometime before we’re 12, we’re shipped off to our foster families to live out there in the real world.” 

“It’s strange though,” Teresa murmured “We’ve never gotten letters from anyone.”

“Maybe they’re being considerate towards their foster families.” Ben suggested.

“But we’ve grown up together.” Gally protested. “We’re all basically family, even if we aren’t related by blood.”

“I guess they’re having too much fun.” Teresa concluded gloomily. “I can’t wait to go outside.” 

“What would you do?” Ben asked. 

“Get new clothes for a start.” Teresa said crossly. “White is so boring.” 

This set them off on a discussion about what they all would do when they went outside: Winston the animal lover wanted to go to the zoo and see all his favorite animals, Chuck wanted to see a train, Gally wanted to go out on a date with a cute guy, to Ben’s suspicious protests, Thomas gave his usual dark perspective, saying he would have to survive first, Minho was just excited for the chance to experience new things, and Newt? Well, thinking about it, he found that going outside would be exciting of course, but he didn’t really want to leave. They had such a great life here after all. He couldn’t be a Mama of course, but maybe he could help with the orphanage administration in some way. Winston declared that he would write to all of them when he left. Newt looked forward to it. 

All too soon, it was time for Winston to go. Like all the kids before him, he saw them off with Mama at the door, dressed in a neat tailored suit and hat; the only time they were allowed to wear something besides their white clothes was when they were leaving the orphanage. Winston put on a brave face, smiling at all of them, but soon enough, he burst into tears. Newt could feel his eyes watering as Mama picked him up and the door shut with a final snap behind them. He could sense Gally doing the same out of the corner of his eye. Winston said he would call, but they never did, did they? He only hoped Winston would remember them, wherever he went. As they slowly dispersed, Newt caught Thomas’s expression. His face was carefully blank, as though he were trying to hide something. He glanced at Minho, who shrugged, head drooping. It was time to get on with their nightly cleanup routine. 

The children spread through the house going to their assigned stations; Newt, Minho, Teresa and Thomas had the dining hall. Newt and Minho were first in, toting mops. Settling into the haze of the routine, it took them a few extra seconds to notice Winston's Little Bunny sitting innocently on the table. But notice they did. Newt gasped in horror. “No way!” Minho muttered.

The door opened again with a click and Teresa and Thomas walked in, talking about nothing in particular. Seeing Newt and Minho, they drew up short. “Winston’s probably gone by now!” Teresa said, eyes widening in panic. 

“I wouldn’t be so sure.” Thomas said calmly. “The lights to the gate are still on and Mama hasn’t returned. Winston may still be here, so if you hurry, I bet you could make it.” Minho turned to Newt in determination. “Ok let’s do this.” He nodded, snatched up Little Bunny, and as one, they burst through the doors and flew down the grassy hill that led to the gate. 

Panting heavily, they came to a stop in front of the gate, which was as dark and gloomy as ever, but halfway open this time, metals bars raised like the fangs of a monster waiting to swallow them up. “Never go near the fence, no matter what.” Newt said to himself. At night, the warning felt more real. 

Minho smiled reassuringly at him “We may get in trouble for this, but we’ll do it together.”

"That cheers me up.” Newt muttered. 

Under the glare of the outside gate lights, the corridor beyond was obscured in darkness, but as they passed under the bars, their eyes slowly began to adjust, revealing a truck with a drab brown exterior and thick white fabric closing off the back. Water dripped regularly from the ceiling, forming puddles on the ground, giving off an old, musty smell.

Minho climbed up to the driver’s door, peering through the window. “No one’s here.” He said, bemused. 

Newt moved to the back, peering up at the heavy curtains. He initially assumed they were fastened together, but he could see now that they hung loose, a thin gap showing between them. “Maybe I’ll just leave it in the back for Winston to find later?” He suggested

Minho nodded “Good idea."

Newt reached up and pulled the curtains open. They parted slightly, and Newt dropped Little Bunny on the ground, paralyzed. “Uh, Minho?” He whispered, voice trembling. He couldn’t say any more, just backed away, a shaking hand pointing at the dark gap between the curtains. Minho hesitantly walked around to join him, glancing at him in concern, before turning back to the truck and gasping at the horror within. For lying there, gray and still, face strangely bloated, was unmistakably Winston. His matted brown hair rested in a pool of liquid matching that of the puddles. Newt wrinkled his nose at the overpowering stench, fairly certain now that it wasn’t water after all. 

But this was Winston wasn’t it? How could it possibly be him? What could possibly have made him like this? Newt shuddered, unable to tear his eyes away. The color of his skin, it was - completely grey, like he had been dead for ages. 

His whirling thoughts were interrupted by a gravely voice grunting “Hey, did you hear a voice just now?” 

“Probably your imagination.” Another voice grumbled back. 

Minho and Newt stared at each other in panic, and then dashed for the side of the truck closest to the wall and away from the voices, Newt turning around to grab Little Bunny. They heard a creaking noise as a door opened. Turning to each other, they nodded in determination, crouching down to crawl under the truck. It was best that they catch a glimpse of what they were up against. The bottom of the truck was close enough to the ground that they weren’t likely to be seen. From the shadows, they cautiously inched towards the sound of footsteps at the back of the truck, and clapped their hands over their mouths to hold in cries of terror. Two monsters walked past, cracked bony faces holding veiny green eyes stacked on top of each other. A giant, gnarled, six fingered hand lifted up Winston like he was a doll, dropping him in some vat of blue tinged bubbling liquid. 

The demons were bickering about not being able to eat Winston; apparently he was valuable merchandise? Through his haze of fear, Minho did his best to catch the important points of their conversation, for some rationale behind the situation they were in. Another demon approached, along with an indistinct figure too far away to make out. The demon said that Winston was 6 years old, and so of average quality, but soon they would be able to harvest the high quality ones, namely the three with full scores. 

Then the demon upended their world yet again. “Mary” it said. “Make sure to prepare the three with full scores.” Minho and Newt gasped, turning their heads past the demon. Sure enough, there was Mama, face like steel, dark brown hair in its signature bun.

Minho grabbed Newt’s arm, communicating with his eyes and sharp, trembling gestures. It was time to go. Mary and the demons were gathered at the back of the truck, turned towards the strange blue container holding Winston. If they were fast, they would be able to sneak past the front of the truck and out the gate. 

Adrenaline giving them a boost, the plan went off smoothly, and they dashed up the hill, only stopping when they approached the lights of the house. 

Newt collapsed to the ground, breath coming in harsh gasps approaching sobs. The cozy familiarity of the house clashed violently with what they had just seen and Newt desperately tried to rationalize it. “Minho,” he gasped. “That shucked out husk wasn’t Winston, was it? We must have been mistaken. This can’t possibly be a farm, Mama can’t possibly be working with those monsters.”

Eyes shadowed, Minho looked back at him. “That was Winston.” he said solemnly. 

Collapsing to the ground, Newt screamed, tears falling from his eyes, not caring who could hear him. He felt a hand clasp his. “C’mon, let’s go.” Minho whispered brokenly. “It’s getting late.” The house was quiet, the other kids safely sleeping in their beds. 

Thomas greeted them, blank expression visible behind the soft glow of his lantern. “Welcome back, did you make it?” 

“No.” Minho muttered, and they brushed past him. 

Minho sat on the edge of his bed and Newt curled up on the floor beside him. They were silent for a while, processing what they had seen. 

“Newt, let’s escape.” Minho murmured. “If it’s just you, me and Thomas, I know we can do it.”

He shook his head. “I know it might be next to impossible, but I can’t leave anyone behind. I don’t want any more of my family to die.”

Minho lowered himself down to sit next to Newt. He smiled reassuringly. “It’s not impossible, let’s do it. Run away with everyone.”

“But how? We’re just kids.” Newt thought a moment and then his eyes widened in wonder and tentative hope. “We’ll outsmart them, it’ll be just like playing tag.”

“Exactly. We’re perfect scorers, we’ll find a way.”

Newt nodded, feeling, if not better, then less lost. The situation they were in was too horrible to comprehend, but functionally, it could be reduced down to its basic elements. They were faced with a difficult problem, but as with every problem, they simply needed to use the tools at their disposal to puzzle their way through. Luckily, Newt, Minho and Thomas excelled at this, having done it all their lives.

Newt stayed by Minho’s bed for a while, but eventually retreated back to his own. They had a busy day tomorrow, it was best to be well rested. Neither of them knew then that Thomas, loitering by the bedroom door, had heard their conversation. Nor did they know that Mama had found Little Bunny under the truck and was already on their trail.


	2. Chapter 2

The sun rose on another day at the orphanage, as if nothing had changed. Newt watched in a daze as his family went about their morning routine, racing around as they got ready for breakfast. He was helping to set the table when he heard Mama’s cheerful voice corralling the smaller kids in order. 

He stood there frozen, staring at her, before he saw Minho entering the room. “Good morning Newt!” He called with an easy smile, walking towards him. “Smile, shuckface.” He hissed as he passed by. 

They had talked about this last night. At some point when they were running away, Newt had dropped Little Bunny. They briefly considered going back for it, but discarded the idea almost immediately. If Mama or the demons had already found it, which was likely, they would be on the alert, and so they would be caught for nothing. Their best defense was innocence. 

It was easier said than done. How could Newt possibly keep up his normal happy attitude, knowing what he knew, especially when it came to Mama? But he had no choice. Newt at his normal self was significantly more cheerful and energetic than he was being now. If they were to have any chance at escaping, he had to at least even the gap. He continued setting the table, forcing a small smile onto his face. 

Minho and Newt met after breakfast to begin their plans for escape. First, they had to know what they were dealing with. Going over the people they remembered being “adopted,” they determined that six to twelve year olds were shipped out monthly. Together, they reconstructed the conversation they overheard from the demons. Six year olds were average quality, implying that demons preferred older children. Newt suggested that weight or size could have something to do with it. 

But it wasn’t just older children, Minho reminded Newt. The full scorers, namely Thomas, Minho and Newt, were apparently of the highest quality. Something about test scores improved the quality? Minho then blanched. “I bet it’s the quality of our brains.” He murmured. Newt winced. “That’s so gross.” 

With Winston shipped out last night, they had a month until the next shipment; a good enough time to plan out their next moves. During break, they continued their discussion by the fence. The younger kids rarely ventured this far out, especially not when the sky was a moody, overcast gray.

To escape, they needed a way out. The Glade house was perched on a hill in the middle of their enclosure, sloping down to a gate and surrounded by forest otherwise. First, Minho mused, they had to decide where to escape from; over the walls or through the gate? That one wasn’t so hard. Aside from shipping days, the gate was always closed. The next question was when. The most convenient times were during the day at playtime or at night during shipping if they did not want to alert Mama. They quickly agreed on the former. 

Which meant exploring what lay beyond the fence. Nervously glancing at each other, they leaped over the fence, and ran for less than a minute before the path turned and they found themselves facing a giant wall about three or four times their height, level with the branches of the surrounding trees. Newt turned to Minho and blinked in surprise, seeing him in the process of scaling the tree closest to them. He was reaching for another branch when his foot slipped and he tumbled to the ground next to Newt. 

“Minho!” Newt cried, looking him over in concern. Luckily, he didn’t get far before falling, so he only seemed mildly dazed. 

“Guess I’m tired from thinking too much.” Minho said sheepishly. 

“Oh well, I guess it’s my turn.” Newt responded with a playful smirk, before bounding up the same tree that had vanquished Minho. 

“What do you see?” Minho called up. 

“It looks like there’s another forest beyond the wall, but the wall itself is maybe two or three meters thick?” Newt guessed. “And it’s just so tall.”

“But there are no guards.” Minho walked up to the wall, placing a hand on the cool gray material and pressing his ear against the side. “It’s quiet.” 

Newt jumped down from the tree, joining him in his examination. “It’s sturdy, with no seams or footholds. No one could climb this.” His voice trembled slightly and Minho glanced at him in concern. Faced with the stressful uncertainty of their position, Newt was losing his normal fire.

“Should we give up then, try something else?” 

Newt brightened in determination. “That’s what the wall is here for, to discourage us.” He turned to Minho. “But with some rope, we could manage it.”

Minho nodded. “That’s right. And with only Mama to worry about, we’ll be fine.” 

The bell rang, breaking into their conversation and sending them rushing back to the main clearing. There were a few other stragglers, including Zart, who ran to Mama, wailing underneath his brown fringe. He had been playing with Alexandra, but they had been separated. Mama reassuringly told him to stay calm, took out what looked like a pocket watch, and after frowning at it for a second, immediately set off into the forest. To Minho and Newt’s shock, she was back in a little over five minutes, carrying a sleeping Alex. 

“Come to think of it, Mama has always been able to find us fairly quickly, hasn’t she?” Newt muttered to Minho.

“We’re being tracked somehow. Of course.” He replied. “That must be why there’s so little security.”

“Another thing to add to our list of problems.” Newt sighed. “She didn’t have to take out that pocket watch in front of everyone though. She’s showing us just how much power she has.”

“She’s also giving us a valuable piece of information.” Minho pointed out. “We can use it to our advantage.” 

Still, he admitted as they returned to their rooms to await the call to dinner. They should have realized that they were being tracked. Newt wondered if Mama knew already, but Minho shook his head. He had checked for cameras and listening devices earlier that day and found nothing. If she knew, Mama would have confronted them directly; there was no reason for her to warn them in such a roundabout way if she knew. 

This supported the likelihood that the orphans were not monitored beyond their tracking devices, which in turn revealed only their location when Mama thought to check. “Don’t worry.” Minho said with a reassuring smile, before going off to help Gally with his broken clock. “We’re suspected as much as anyone else here.”

It was all well and good for Minho to say this when Mama was a figure in the distance they could avoid. It was another thing entirely to have her looking at you, pleasant smile hiding menacing steel. Newt was heading to his room when Mama called him aside, asking him if he was feeling alright. She had noticed that he was not his cheerful self.

Newt stared into her electric blue eyes, frozen in terror. He saw Winston dropped into the blue vat, grey, bloated and curled up. He smiled apologetically. “Sorry, I’ve just been sad because Winston is gone. But I know a nice family must have adopted him so I’m sure he's okay.” He carried this off with barely a tremor. 

After a hard stare Mary finally smiled at him. “Good, I’m glad you feel better. And you’re right. There is no need to worry about Winston.”

He was saved from having to respond by Thomas approaching with his usual sleepy, blank expression, ringing the dinner bell. Kids began pouring out of the nearby rooms, filing down to the hall. Minho popped out from behind a corner, cheerfully raising a hand. “Let’s go, Newt.”

As they were walking down, Mama said “Did you two visit the gate last night.” They paused, and Minho scoffed. “No, of course not. It’s off limits, why do you ask?” Mary pinned them with her discerning gaze, before smiling dismissively. “Oh never mind. Have a nice dinner.” And she walked off. 

The conversation had taken long enough that nearly everyone was at dinner by now, leaving a deserted stairwell. When they reached the bottom, Newt collapsed on the stairs, clutching the banister. Minho looked at him worriedly, looking shaken himself. “Hey, we made it, alright? We just need to keep going, good that?” Newt locked eyes with Minho, both boys communicating equal parts reassurance and fear. With a nod, they collected themselves and stood up, walking to the dining hall as one.  


Given the scare before dinner, it was a relief to successfully pull off their rope finding mission. In a brilliant idea from Minho, they snuck into the storage room that night and carefully picked out rolls of tablecloth, enough to twist into a sizable length of rope, which they did by the wall during break the next day, sneaking the cloth out under their clothes. Stuffing the rope into a makeshift tablecloth bag, Newt stashed the completed bundle in a small tree hollow obscured by branches. 

“Now if we find a way to deal with the trackers, then we could safely explore beyond the wall.” Newt mused. He looked at Minho, struck by a thought. “Hey, maybe we should tell Thomas!”

Minho raised an eyebrow. “You think?”

“Yeah, he’s into engineering so he might be able to help us with the trackers. He also is the least likely to overreact and as a perfect scorer, he’s apparently in danger as much as we are.”

“That’s not a bad idea.” Minho looked thoughtful. “Maybe I should talk to him first though.” 

Newt frowned. “Why do you say that?”

“Talk to me about what?”

They gasped and whirled around to see Thomas plodding towards them. As usual, his expression revealed nothing. “Sorry.” He said, looking anything but. “I followed you, because I have some questions for you two.” As they watched warily, Thomas leant against a tree, arms crossed. He regarded them carefully for a moment, before asking “What happened when you tried to give Winston his little bunny? You guys didn’t look disappointed when you came back. You looked terrified. More importantly though, where is Little Bunny? If you didn’t make it in time, I really doubt you would have just thrown away Winston’s precious toy.”

When they stared at him, gaping in astonishment, he scoffed, looking mildly irritated. “C’mon guys, give it up. I know something happened.” 

Newt looked at Minho hesitantly, who gave him a nod of encouragement. Taking a deep breath, he turned to Thomas and began to recount what they had seen the night before last. Two days, he could hardly believe it was only two days ago that Winston... When he finished, Thomas looked at both of them in contemplation, before raising his eyebrows, saying dryly “This is bad, isn’t it?”

Newt blinked in surprise. “You catch on fast. So you believe us?”

“That this orphanage is a farm and we’re taken care of to become demon food? That Mama is in cahoots with the demons? Sure.” Thomas shrugged. “You guys wouldn’t tell me such a stupid lie.” He cocked his head to the side, thinking. “Well, not both of you. If it was just Newt...” “Hey!” Newt complained, but Thomas had a faint, teasing smile on his face, lessening the bite. 

Thomas frowned in contemplation. “So there are several problems to consider regarding our chances for escape. First is the number of kids. We’ll need to narrow down-”

“Hey wait.” Newt thrust out a hand, stopping Thomas. “I want to escape with everyone.” He declared. His resolve had only grown over the past few days. 

This, out of everything he told him over the past few minutes, finally brought an incredulous stare of genuine shock from Thomas. “Everyone.” He repeated in disbelief, voice rising. “Seriously? There are 37 of us, mostly under six years old. We’re up against Mama, demons, trackers. It’ll be nearly impossible to escape as it is. And besides, have you even thought about what’s waiting for us-”

“Thomas c’mon,” Minho muttered, “Calm down.” 

Thomas smirked at Minho. “So that’s why you wanted to talk to me alone.” He turned back to Newt, stepping forward. “Look, sometimes it’s best to be blunt. We have no idea what we’re facing outside these walls. We live on a farm. That means we’re shipped off somewhere. That means outside is a society of demons. Who knows if there’s a place for humans to live.”

Thomas laid a hand on Newt’s shoulder. “The best, the only option is to leave most of us behind. Otherwise we’ll all be killed.” 

Well, the problem was a lot more difficult than he had anticipated. Nevertheless… Newt shook his head. “No way.” Thomas pulled back with a gasp. “It may or may not be impossible, but we have to escape with everyone, so let’s figure it out! I don’t want anyone else to die, but leaving them behind is not an option. I want Winston to be the last. I don’t want anyone to end up like that again.”

He looked at Thomas, who was staring at him as though Newt were insane. “If there isn’t a place for humans outside, then let's make one. Let’s change the world!” He placed his hands on Thomas’s shoulders imploringly. “You’ve helped me understand what kind of escape we have to make. I’m not giving up on this so stop being such a pessimist and help us!”

Thomas shook him off with a glare. “You are such an idiot sometimes.” 

Newt glared back. “I refuse to escape unless we all do.” 

Their argument was cut off by Minho giggling behind them 

Thomas rounded on him. “Don’t you have any sense?”

Minho sighed. “Hey Newt, can I speak to this shank in private? It’ll only take a second.”

“Sure, I guess.” Newt huffed.

After Minho dragged Thomas a few trees away. Thomas glared at him, hissing “Do something about this shuck face over here or we’re all going to die. He’s being completely unreasonable.”

Minho beamed “I know right!” He glanced over at the direction he came in. “But at least he’s back to his energetic self.”

Thomas shook his head in irritation. “You knew this would be his plan from the start, didn’t you?”

Minho’s smile dropped “Newt was crying.” he said solemnly. “The night we saw those … things. I thought it was because he was scared of dying. I certainly was.” He smiled slightly “But that’s not how Newt is. I was scared of dying. He was scared of his family dying. Isn’t that amazing?”

“Sure that’s amazing” Thomas snapped. “He’s better than both of us. But in this case he’s wrong. The idiot is trying to make a boat out of mud. I was talking about narrowing down who can come with us, but even that’s probably a stretch. It’ll be hard enough with just us three. Don’t let your emotions distort your judgement Minho.”

“Thomas, you misunderstand me.” Minho laughed. “I also want to make a boat out of mud.”

“Seriously? But you're the reasonable one. Why would you go along with him in this?”

Minho shrugged. “Because Newt’s my best friend and I want him to be happy. Also, I trust his judgement.”

Thomas shook his head in disbelief “What if Newt dies?”

Minho leveled his gaze at Thomas “We won’t let that happen, will we? I know I won’t. And I’ve always managed to accomplish everything I set out to do.” He smirked. “Anyway, regarding your neat little metaphor, a boat made out of mud doesn’t always sink, right? Not if you bake it.”

“You’re nuts.”

“Maybe, but then Newt and I are nuts together. You’re not going to let us muddle our way through on our own, are you?”

Thomas grimaced. “Dammit, of course I can’t do that.” 

“Great!” Minho said cheerfully, “So you’ve come to your senses, let’s tell Newt!” 

The house bell rang repeatedly and Thomas and Minho looked at each other in confusion. Newt ran up to them “Guys, we still have time right?” 

Minho nodded. “Must be something else.” Together, they ran back to the house, filing into the dining hall with everyone else. A woman was standing next to Mama, who was beaming, holding a baby. Once they all gathered, Mama gave her introductions. The baby was Beth, the newest addition to their family. The woman standing next to her was sister Rachel, who had apparently come to help Mama. 

“Another adult? Seriously?” Newt whispered to Minho, voice trembling. As Rachel introduced herself with a polite smile, Mary’s own smile gained a predatory gleam as she scanned the room, passing over Newt, Thomas and Minho, each lost in spirals of worry. 


	3. Chapter 3

Minho, Thomas and Newt watched Mama settle Sister Rachel into her room, smiling like angels at their suspicious backward glances.   


“She’s in a bad spot.” Thomas muttered “Right in the midst of all our rooms.”

In hopes of avoiding potential listeners, Thomas suggested they go to the library to talk, where no one was likely to be at this hour. 

They stood around one of the study tables, Newt leaning next to Thomas against the bookshelf while Minho rested his arms on one of the tall chairs. The night lanterns washed their faces in a dark red hue. “Man, this is annoying,” Minho complained. “I was so focused on the tracking devices that I didn’t think about Mama getting another adult.” 

“This could actually be a good thing.” Thomas mused. “We now have two new sources of information. Beth’s arrival shows that the farm is quick to replace their merchandise. They must have a site where babies are produced for the farms.”

“It’s also significant that there are more adults besides Mama. Where did they come from? Did they grow up like us, or were they captured?” Minho wondered.

“Still.” Newt grumbled. “We first need to figure out how to escape, which we can’t do without the location of the tracking devices.” He rubbed his arms. “I’ve looked all over, but I can’t find any trace of a tracker on my body.” 

“Based on existing human technology, the trackers would probably use radio waves." Thomas said. "But this would require batteries, and given that we can’t find them easily, the trackers are probably really small, not even leaving a scar. That kind of technology is beyond anything I’ve read.  This means figuring out where the tracker is and how to break will be difficult. Probably impossible if it’s demon technology.” 

“Oh yeah, what do we do then?” Newt frowned. 

Thomas smiled drily “Then it’s game over.”

“Aw c’mon, pessimist.” Newt whined, elbowing him gently in the side.   


“Guys, calm down.” Minho said with a small smile. “We can still try to find them, even if it ends up being impossible.”

Thomas frowned. “From the enemy's point of view, where would be the most convenient place to implant a tracker, and what kind of device would it be?” 

They were silent for a while, turning over the various possibilities. Suddenly, Minho looked up with a gasp. “Beth, of course!”

* * *

Washing dishes after dinner, Minho and Thomas watched as Rachel played with several of the younger kids. 

“How the shuck do we outmaneuver two adults who are so well liked?” Thomas muttered. 

“Our biggest concern is their report to the demons.” Minho said. “As soon as we escape, they’ll come after us.” 

“Well there’s one way to stop that.” Thomas said, clutching the fork he was washing. Minho eyed him with trepidation. He really hoped it didn’t come to that; for Thomas to even suggest such a thing with such conviction…. None of them were killers. 

A large shadow loomed over Minho and Thomas and they peered up at a smiling Rachel. “Minho and Thomas right?” she asked pleasantly.

“Yes,” Minho responded hesitantly. 

“I heard you got perfect scores on your tests. That’s amazing!” 

She took their hands. “I just wanted to greet you in person. I hope we can get along!” 

Thomas and Minho eyed her as she ambled off to the younger kids. 

“Do you think she heard us?” Thomas whispered. 

“No, she was too far away when we were talking about the demons. But I do think she suspects us, as perfect scorers and the oldest of the group.” 

“How does she know? Do you think Mama told her already?”

“From the way she was looking at us, I think so.” Minho sighed. “Mama’s closing in on us. We have to act fast.”    


* * *

Meanwhile, Newt snuck into the room where the one year olds were sleeping. Mama wasn’t due to check on them for about half an hour, so he had some time. What a pain though. If he were a girl, this would be much easier; Teresa and the other girls sometimes took care of the babies when Mama was busy. 

He found Beth, and drawing her blanket aside, began to examine her as she giggled softly at the touch. Her torso and limbs carried no obvious trace of a tracking device. Beth hopefully raised her hands towards him and he picked her up, trying to concentrate, trying to think from the enemy’s point of view. It was just another test question. The demons probably wouldn’t want to eat the tracking device, so it was probably somewhere easily removable. Somewhere in the extremities of the body. The hands… feet… ears... 

Newt gasped. Dimly, he heard the sound of soft footsteps. He turned and sighed with relief. It was just Teresa. But now he would have to explain what he was doing. 

“What are you doing here?” Teresa asked, looking mildly concerned. 

He smiled “Hey Teresa… I just wanted to look at Beth here more closely. Don’t you think she looks a lot like me?” It was a flimsy excuse, but it was true; Beth’s fluffy blond hair and electric blue eyes perfectly matched his own. It was probably a coincidence, but given the circumstances of their birth, she could very well be his sister. Who knew?

“I suppose so.” Teresa said doubtfully. “It’s hard to tell, her being a baby and all.” 

But that’s not what he was here for. Remembering his earlier thought, he set Beth down and examined her ear. Sure enough, turning the back of her ear over, he saw a small bump. 

“What is that?...” Newt murmured. “It looks like a bug bite.”   
“Oh yeah, I remember,” Teresa said. “Chuck, Frypan, Alby and Winston all had it. Mama told me some time ago that it was where blood was drawn to check for diseases.”

She tilted her head to the side, drawing her long brown hair. “I haven’t thought about it in ages. Do I have it?” She asked curiously.

“No, it disappeared.” 

Teresa shrugged “Well that makes sense. I’m ten and you’re eleven after all.” 

Newt examined the bump again. So that was the tracker. For a technological device emitting radio waves, it was a lot smaller than he thought it would be. 

“What was?” Teresa asked.

Newt jumped. “Oh, I just meant that it must have been such a small scar for it to have already disappeared.” 

“Yeah,” She responded softly. 

Beth started crying and he hurriedly picked her up again, sighing in relief when she quieted down. Lost in his thoughts, he didn’t see Teresa looking at him with an unreadable expression. 

* * *

During break the next day, Newt rushed over to their meeting spot in the woods, passing by Thomas, who was reading as usual by his tree. They had decided to go to the location one by one so as to hopefully avoid suspicion. He winced in mild pain and surprise when a ball bounced on his head and flew out in front of him. Glancing at Thomas, who gave him a concerned smile, he laughed and ran after the ball, taking it with him to the woods. Whoever threw it, it was their fault for hitting him; they could find another ball. 

Soon enough, they were all together in a small clearing. 

“Wow, no wonder we couldn’t find it.” Minho said, shaking his head. "I had no idea about the blood." 

“Neither did I.” Newt admitted. “I was lucky that Teresa happened to show up, she told me that she saw most of the younger kids with that mark for at least a few months before it closed up.”   
Thomas smiled at Newt. “Good job anyway, now we know.”

“And now we can move to the next step.” Minho said:  “How to break it,” they intoned, collectively raising a finger.   


“How should we go about examining the tracker?” Minho wondered. “If we try to cut it out, Mama could easily notice.”

“What do we know about the tracker?” Thomas said. “At the very least, I’m pretty sure we can say it is functionally simple.”

Newt raised his eyebrows. “You think?”   
Thomas nodded. “It doesn’t specify individuals and it doesn’t alert Mama when we get close to the wall. Otherwise she would definitely be on to us. Mama and the demons must be confident enough in the security of this place that they would risk such a simple device.” 

“Maybe they’re alerted when the tracking devices are broken?” Minho suggested. Then his eyes widened. “That would explain Mama purposefully showing us the tracking devices.” 

“That makes sense,” Thomas agreed. “So we should only destroy the trackers when we escape.”    


Newt frowned. “Hang on, then how will we figure out how to break them?” 

“Given what we know about the tracker, I think I have a pretty good idea about how to go about breaking it. Can you just leave it to me?”    
Minho gave Thomas a funny look. “You sure?” 

“Yep.” 

Minho frowned. He guessed that Thomas would somehow build a device to neutralize the trackers. He looked all too calm, considering the enormity of the task before him. 

Newt blinked, fiddling with the ball. “If you say so, then we’ll leave it to you.” 

“What’s next is convincing everyone to escape with us. The problem here is that everyone loves Mama and sister Rachel is also really popular.” Minho said. “They probably won’t be able to handle the truth.”

“I suppose we might have to figure out some way to lie to them.” Newt said. 

“We also need to worry about insufficient abilities. Most of the kids will be little more than a hindrance.” 

“Hey!”

“Look, it’s the truth. We have a lot of babies and little kids who can barely walk. Even some of the older kids are not the best at physical activities.”

“Well, I have an idea about that.” Newt said.

“Yeah?” 

Newt grinned, remembering his conversation with Minho what felt like weeks ago. “Tag.”

Minho laughed, reaching the same conclusion “Of course.” 

“Minho can be it, while everyone runs.”

“We play tag so often anyway, so Mama won’t suspect a thing.” Minho concluded.

“As the most physically fit among us, I can teach them how to use their bodies, while you guys can teach the strategy.” Newt beamed at Thomas. “Now you have to join in for the sake of our escape.”

“Yeah, yeah.” But Thomas was smiling back, reluctantly swept up in Newt's infectious enthusiasm.   


* * *

After lunch, they put their strategy into action, gathering everyone for a game of tag. Newt led everyone on a run through the woods, then, sticking with the smaller kids, told everyone else to split up. Making sure to evade Minho, Thomas gave the others some time before looking for them himself, giving them helpful pointers when he came across anyone making obvious mistakes. Like Harriet with her footprints, Gally running upwind. 

Soon enough, Minho found them all; Newt even faster than usual, because he was busy taking care of the under six year olds. Still, it was a good start. Thomas reported that the people he found responded well to his instructions, even if Gally sneered at him slightly before ultimately listening to his advice. 

Sitting by his usual tree, Thomas was in the middle of lecturing a despondent Sonya about her tag habits, when Sister Rachel ambled over, some under six year olds in tow. 

“You guys are playing tag right? It looks so fun!” she said cheerfully. “I want to get along with everyone, so how about I join in! Let’s set the time limit for 20 minutes, and I can be It.”

She was trying to test them, obviously, Newt thought grimly. Although sooner than anticipated, this would be good practice. Minho and Thomas ran off together while Newt led a group through the forest, aiming for a respectable distance before finding a good hiding spot. If they were lucky, Rachel would spend her time going after Minho and Thomas, picking up some of the six year olds along the way and leaving the rest safe. The group whittled down as everyone split off to hide behind trees and bushes, or in the branches, in the case of Newt and a handful of the bolder kids. He heard Rachel’s gleeful shout about ‘getting serious,’ before a tense silence spread through the forest. Where was she? 

Then Newt saw several of the younger kids walking into the middle of the clearing. What were they doing? His heart sank when he saw them looking curiously at scattered leaves with heart and star shaped holes. Rachel swooped in, hugging the unlucky five. 

After that, it was carnage. Rachel raced around the forest, quickly picking up the rest of the younger kids, then moving on to Ben, Harriet, Miyoko, Frypan… Newt winced as he saw Rachel bursting through a small tree cavity, picking up the unlucky Sonya. 

Sonya burst out of the forest. “Guys, this is impossible! Sister Rachel is way too good at tag!” She drew up short, blinking in surprise at the number of people already out. “No way, Gally and Teresa?” 

“Yeah, she’s so fast, it’s crazy.” Gally grumbled. 

“She is a lot quicker at finding people than Minho!” Teresa said with dismay. 

A little under ten minutes were left and from what Newt could tell, most everyone had been found. Whoever remained, if they could just hold on… 

Chuck and Alby ran toward her, Alby helping the exhausted younger boy along. Fast on their heels was Sister Rachel. Newt clenched his teeth in determination; he could do this! He swooped in, carrying Chuck and taking Alby’s hand. 

He knew he couldn’t outrun Rachel, not while carrying Chuck and basically dragging Alby along. But if he could just find a good hiding spot, sister Rachel might make the mistake of turning her focus on Minho and Thomas. 

He jumped into a small ravine, one he would have probably jumped across under normal circumstances. There! He drew them behind a large boulder, clapping a hand over his mouth and doing the same for Chuck. 

“You must be tired Newt.” Sister Rachel called. “You were carrying Chuck, so I know you must be hiding around here to rest.“ Newt heard her footsteps approaching his boulder and he tensed, ready to crawl around if he heard her going one direction or another.

“You know,” Sister Rachel continued in a conversational tone. “I’ve been reading up on you three top scorers. “Minho’s weakness is his physical ability; I heard that he was often ill when he was younger. Thomas’s weakness is his tunnel vision; he makes decisions quickly and is slow to change once he has made up his mind. And Newt…“ Newt heard her continue to pace. “Your weakness is your naivete. Carrying others when you're being chased. Just give up and come out, I’ll catch you in the end.” Her voice was eerily close, but he wasn’t sure from which direction. 

“Hey Newt, if you saw the harvest, know that I’m on your side.” 

He gasped and looked up. In a flash, Sister Rachel had managed to climb the boulder and was now looking at them with a smirk of triumph. 

Newt, Alby and Chuck emerged from the forest in defeat, meeting a chorus of groans. “Newt, no!” Sonya moaned. “Now it’s just Minho and Thomas.” 

“How much time is left” Newt asked, flopping down to the grass. 

“8 minutes and 40 seconds!”

He knew that Sister Rachel underestimated the two; Minho may have been ill as a child, but he worked hard to overcome his deficiencies, and now was about as fast as the rest of the older kids, with the exception of Newt of course. And Thomas could out-think any of them, even Minho sometimes, though Newt would never say that to either of their faces. The two just might have a shot. 

Thomas and Minho peered through the bushes, listening to the footsteps of a rapidly approaching Sister Rachel. They could stay and hope she passed them by, or they could make a run for it. They weren’t in the best of hiding spots, and given her obvious skill at finding people, their chances of staying hidden were low. Thomas pulled out his watch, showing it to Minho. They had five minutes left. 

Minho nodded; it was time to go. He looked around; they were in the part of the woods where he had been chasing Newt several days ago. Where Newt had… 

He gasped, turning to Thomas. “I have an idea.” He whispered, “follow me.” Thomas shrugged and nodded and they burst through the bushes, running like mad as they heard Sister Rachel call “Found you!” with a shout of glee.

She was astonishingly fast; Minho could hear her gaining they ran. But they were approaching a fork in the path. “Okay.” Thomas panted, understanding immediately.

“I’ll go right,” Minho called out. It only helped them for Sister Rachel to hear. He had a known history of illness, making him weak and frail as a child. But when your friend was Newt, you couldn’t help but acquire a healthy dose of physical ability. Sister Rachel just might underestimate him.

Sure enough, when they split up, he heard Sister Rachel turn to follow him, racing to catch up. They had been running for a while and Minho could feel himself start to slow down. But he couldn’t lose, not now! Adrenaline spurred him on to the small ravine Newt had jumped across. Newt had taken him by surprise the other day, but now he was prepared. The trick was to move without hesitation. With a running start, he cleared the first gap, and managed to jump across a path of boulders, clearing the second major gap to the other side. He did it! 

He scrambled up to the top of a particularly large boulder before turning back, noting with satisfaction that Sister Rachel had stopped following, eyeing the last gap with trepidation. In desperation, she slid down to the bottom of the ravine, jumped across a thin stream of water, and climbed up to the other side. But she didn’t have the time, and she knew it. By the time she made it across, there were five seconds left, and Minho’s boulder was just a bit too high. She could do nothing but glare at Minho until the time ran out. 

Minho smirked when, to add insult to injury, Thomas ran up to her, tagging her out. “Time’s up.” he said dryly, holding up his pocket watch. 

“Better luck next time!” Minho said cheerfully. They were immature little kids, couldn’t hurt to act the part. Sister Rachel waved it off with a forced smile and they raced ahead of her back to the lawn. “Hey good one,” Thomas said as they ran. “Ah, it was all Newt,” Minho responded. When Thomas and Minho reached the others, they received a hero’s welcome. Their expressions of triumph said it all and the orphans erupted in cheers. 

* * *

Minho had half expected Sister Rachel to call for a rematch, if not right away, then in the following days. However, she did nothing new, retreating into her role as caretaker of the younger children. Meanwhile, their training was going well; everyone was slowly getting better at hiding, with a few occasionally managing to evade Minho for longer than the half hour limit. Usually those few would be among the older orphans, but once, Minho had spent so long chasing Teresa that Sonya had slipped through the cracks. A fact that she didn't let them forget, bragging about it until Minho caught her at the tail end of the next hide and seek. 

According to Thomas, he was making good progress on preparations to break the tracker, though Minho would have to take his word for it; all evidence he had of Thomas's work was his sneaking away during break times and shuffling around at night with a bag of small, shadowy gadgets.   


Minho, Newt and Thomas met in the library a week after Sister Rachel’s tag performance to talk about their next steps. Newt began the discussion by bringing up Sister Rachel and remarking upon her unusual quiet. 

“I bet it’s on Mama’s orders.” Minho said thoughtfully. “Mama seemed really suspicious of us before, but it suddenly doesn’t seem that way.”

Newt hummed. “I wonder why.” Thomas remained silent, staring off into the bookshelves. 

“Thomas, what do you think?” Minho asked, the dark cloud of an idea forming in his head.

“I don't know, what do you think?” Thomas parroted back.

“I think Mama did something behind the scenes so she wouldn’t have to keep track of us herself.” 

“What do you think she did?” Newt asked curiously. 

“Well, what would be the most convenient situation for her?” Minho asked, deciding it would be better for him to come up with the horrible possibility on his own.   


“Knowing our movements without having to do anything herself. But there are no cameras or listening devices, so…” Newt gasped. “No way-“

“There’s probably a spy among us.” Thomas said. “One of the kids.” His face was blank.

“A traitor.” Minho concluded, voice hard. 

Off in the distance, they heard the sound of the bell ringing. 

“Let’s go.” Thomas muttered, and they walked through the dimly lit corridors to the dining hall. Newt glanced at the blur of everyone coming in; Minho, Thomas, Teresa, Gally, Ben, Sonia..., and at Sister Rachel and Mama, who wore their pleasant smiles like armor. 

Who among the orphans could possibly be a spy? Newt didn't want to believe that it could be anyone, but once the idea of a double agent was introduced, there was no escaping its overwhelming probability.   


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Updates will be continue to be sporadic, but my goal is to keep going and actually finish a story for once. We'll see how that goes.


End file.
